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This doughnut shop has been a Decatur staple since the first store opened in May 1960. Its owners at the time were Don Wilson and Bill Bartlett, and the store was located at 1263 E. Eldorado St.
Don Sterling, who had been working in real estate, acquired the business, by then at 1500 N. Water St., in 1973.
The number of Decatur locations eventually grew to three, with additional stores at 250 N. Jasper St. and 249 W. 1st Drive.
Sterling was the first to install automated baking equipment and offered doughnuts to schools and churches as a money-making project for booster clubs, cheerleaders and others. That practice continues today.
Sterling sold the business in December 1978 and moved to Florida.
In October 1984, the business was bought by its principal rival, Van Zetti Bakery, and the three stores became outlets for Van Zetti baked goods. In 1989, the 72-year-old Van Zetti store was shuttered.
That might have been the end of the story, except for Sterling’s daughters.
Lori George and Jody Cox frequently were approached by longtime residents nostalgic for the doughnuts they remembered.
The girls talked their dad about coming home and restarting the business, which Sterling did in March 1993.
In 1996, the business moved from the corner of 22nd Street and Pershing Road to its current location along East William Street Road. It is here that the first crew arrives as 6 each night to begin the process of making the next day’s doughnuts, more than 100 dozen. When the doors open at 4:30 a.m., patrons have a choice of more than 40 varieties of doughnuts and a full breakfast menu that includes made from scratch biscuits and gravy.
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